How to Hire A Celebrity to Market Your Brand

The type of celebrity and the stage of their career can greatly reduce your cost.

Brands don’t have to spend seven figures to successfully use a celebrity.

Informed marketers with limited budgets can afford to hire up and coming or even a well-established celebrity who is eager to work.

Building brand awareness, volume and increased sales can be accomplished with non-traditional celebrities.

Here are four different types of celebrities which cost much less than superstars but still have a big impact:

1. Experts

Your brand could possibly utilize a home expert if they are a good fit for your target demographic. There are many different types of experts in this category such as moms, designers, party planners, do-it-yourselfers or cooks.

Rachael Ray was an expert chef before her career success and fame gave her celebrity star status.

Fees for a top-level expert can vary from $100,000 to $150,000* per day where as a mid-level or lower level expert would range from $5,000-$40,000* per day.

2. Reality Stars

Shows like The Apprentice and Celebrity Apprentice created product endorsers from contestants and show hosts such as Bill Rancic and Ivanka Trump.

Fees are similar to the ‘experts’ where there is a sizable cost savings using a reality star celebrity that is in the mid-level to lower-level range.

3. Bloggers

Social media created a cottage industry of bloggers who influence consumers and add to their following representing brands.

Fees for a sponsored post vary widely from $2,000-40,000.

For a blogger to endorse your brand, fees would be in a similar range as an expert or reality star celebrity.

4. Deceased Celebs

A deceased celebrity is often overlooked. One of the upsides is no risk of tarnishing a brand by bad behavior in the future.

Fees typically range from $50,000 – $500,000* and vary by the estate’s view of fair market value. You can find great value in this category.

*Fee ranges vary. Exact services, number of days, brand exclusivity, along with supply and demand determine the ultimate fee.

Hiring a celebrity at a certain point in their career is another way to reduce costs further.

1. Up and coming celebrities

An example is hiring either Super Bowl quarterback a year before they play in the big game. It’s not unusual for an endorsement fee to triple once they’ve been crowned a champion.

Hire the celebrity when they first become hot, not when they’ve peaked.

2. Below fair market value celebrity

Celebrities who want or need to work, set fees lower than fair market value.

Most actors and athletes are not guaranteed the next payday and feel pressure for regular income.

Knowing how long it’s been since their last big paycheck will help estimate fees.

3. High name recognition celebrities

Celebrities are usually more willing to negotiate later in their career. A large number of celebrities fall into this category and they can be a great way to hire a trusted, recognizable face at an affordable price.

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I'm Bob Williams, CEO| Speaker | Author of The Brand Agent

The Brand Agent provides resources on how to build brands through celebrities, music and sports.

Celebrity marketing requires special knowledge and skills. My articles are intended to help save you time, money and frustration.

Over my career, I have led in negotiating thousands of celebrity contracts and helped match small and large brands with the right celebrity. I’m glad to share my celebrity marketing expertise with you.